Thursday, October 29, 2009

Iz noo catnip toy. Iz two layers of double-seamed cotton poplin, wif US-Grown cotton yarn, dye-free feathers, and an interior rattle made of red beans and a jingle bell so it feelz like it fighting back!

Dis the furst time I tries it out. This kinda a deluxe model. They coming in fishie and birdie shapes, too, and prolly economy ones that just has rattles and catnips.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

I measured the biggest of the cat toys and a drawer organizer I wasn’t using anymore and bought an end table with a lower shelf and a drawer.

Now all of the cat treat packages, canned food, catnip, leads, Frontline treatments, emergency supplies and mouse and ball toys that come in the multipacks are lined up neatly in the drawer, and the larger items are on the shelf below. I bought a cheap one because I suspect it will eventually get claw marks and need to be repainted.

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Sunday, September 20th, the primate (Pet) will be spending all day designing retro-style animal caricaturez. If yoo wants your pet, oar if yoo wants yourself if yoo iz an animal, made into a retro cartoon, comment with a link to a picture and your fafurrite colorz.

If yoo is on Twitter, sends me a twitpic with the hashtag #retrotoon and yoo fafurrite colors foar backgrounds.

Yoo can sends it any time in the next 7 days! In return, the hooman gets to use your pets az inspirashun foar art and yoo gets a 1000×1000 pixel retro cartoon to makes into avatars.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

My primate iz taking part in a Banned Book Challenge sponsored by Bibliobrat during the month uv September, leading up to the ALA’s official Banned Book Week. Also, she just joined Swaptree and has started trading books there, so wat she ends up reading depends on a somewhat random trading system. Shud be interesting.

Iz hard for hur to find challenged books to read on the frequently challenged lists cuz she reads so many uv them befoar, so she trading foar some classics she missed and sum noo ones that may only have been challenged in small areas. A challenged book is one that someone has tried to have removed frum a school, classroom, oar library, mostly. There iz many reasons people want them removed that uzually reflekt the opinions uv a small group uv people in a certain time period. For instance, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn iz uzually challenged these days for ironic use of the “N” word (sometimes the sarcasm iz lost on people….), but when it furst got into schoolz it was challenged foar portraying an inappropriate friendship between a white child and a runaway slave.

All challenging books seems to do iz make them moar popular. There iz a LOT uv books mai primate wouldn’t have read if she didn’t need to find out wai she wasn’t supposed to read them!

Make sure yoo iz using wild Chicken uv the Sea Pink Salmonz, cuz iz certified sustainable bai Marine Stewardship Council and also, hao often yoo gets chickawn and fishies and mermaids at the same time otherwise?

1. Mix together first 4 ingredients. Doos it until the bread thingies start to gets mushy, then let it sit there foar awile.

About the Lucky Maneki Neko

In celebration, I’m giving away a custom Maneki Neko. There are many stories about the origin of the Lucky Maneki Neko figurine, but here is my favorite:

A wealthy feudal lord was taking shelter under a tree near Gotoku-ji temple during a thunderstorm. The lord saw the temple priest’s cat beckoning to him and followed; a moment later the tree was struck by lightning. The wealthy man became friends with the poor priest and the temple became prosperous. When the cat died, supposedly the first Maneki Neko was made in his honor.

The Maneki Neko comes in a wide variety of traditional colors and styles, each representing a different lucky subject. Calicos are for general luck, Red and Pink for love and romance, Black for protection from evil, Gold for prosperity and White for a positive future.

The Beckoning Cat, also known as Welcoming Cat, Lucky Cat, Money cat or Fortune Cat, is most often depicted as a Japanese Bobtail cat, a cat with a tail somewhat like a rabbit’s. They also come with long tails, right or left paws raised, both paws raised, and with the paw facing backwards for Western audiences.

The prize for this contest is a custom Animini necklace posed like a lucky Maneki Neko, but you aren’t limited to traditional colors or cats. You can choose your dog, a panda, a hamster, a guinea pig, or whatever other animal represents love and luck for you. (Obviously if you pick a shark, or something, I can redesign the pose to something more naturalistic.)

The pendant will be about the size of a quarter, hand-painted to match your request, with a collar in your favorite color. I triple-glaze so they have the feel of a china animal, but they are made of durable polymer clay. Will be shipped free anywhere in the world in a velour gift bag, and arrives on an 18-inch black PVC cord with sterling clasp, a 24-inch “dog tag” ball chain, or an ID lanyard (your choice).

How to Enter

This post is going up in four places. You can enter at all four and quadruple your chances of winning.

On Facebook: Post a link to a picture of your favorite animal as a comment on this note and explain your choice.

On the Animini City Blog: or on Loki’s Blog, Log in to the comments with your facebook, twitter, google or open ID account and post a picture of your favorite animal directly in the blog comments and explain your choice. Be sure to tell me who you are on Facebook if you don’t use your facebook account.

On 43 Things: Comment on this entry, explain your choice, and upload a picture. Be sure to tell me who you are on Facebook if you don’t use your facebook account.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Furst, yoo need to know I gets paid in Fancy Feast inna can, the kind wif the gravy. I takes 10% up front. That wai in pikture 1 I yoo sees me negotiating wif the photografer.

It takes sum time to sets up the shoot, and sumtimes photografer takes stoopid shots like 2.

I stretching in 3 and 4. Wen I want sumthing, I stands up like a hooman. Here I wants the rest uv the Fancy Feast, but in order to gets it, I need to be moar serious.

In pikture 5, photografer going foar the cute looking up look, but can’t sees the collar innit, and foar sum rezon they trying to show peoples the collar and not me.

Picture 6 I giving mai “bored model look”. Unfortunately, photographer tells me they not trying to convey boredom. So I whips out mai most intense predatory stare. I calls it “Le tigre”. Photografer likes it az a picture and might turn it into a painting, but not to represent the collar. Also, they need space foar wurds and mai tail iz inna way.

She tells me to be “perky”. Rite aftur I rolls mai eyes, she took shot 8. As yoo can see, dis the one we uzing, and I gets to haz the whole can uv Fancy Feast. All iz well!

Thursday, August 6, 2009

I unnerstand that it wuz really a live-action cartoon and yoo can see which bits iz taken rite outta Tom and Jerry and stuffs, but aftur awile I gots bored wen Walken wasn’t onna screen. And wat with dat Catzilla in dat horrible sheltur? I’d be like Catzilla, too, if I came frum a sheltur like dat!

And efurry time I left to gets a snack I cuda sworn I hears a meerkat talking.

Anyhao, I didn’t like it enuff to recommend it unless yoo is trying to see alla Walken’s movies, but it nowhere near az annoying az Pennies from Heaven.

Monkeybone wuz OK. The place ware alla the coma people go was definnatly wurth watching even if the storee duzn’t suit yoo just foar the artwork and character designs. There were sum really highbrow gags that came outta nowhere that made me wunder if it written bai moar than one purrson oar bai one purrson’s right and left hands. Story pretty predictable but the art directshun wuzn’t. The Kitty lady wearing alla the Egyptian designs wuz a good touch, and Whoopi Goldberg as Death wuz a genius casting job!

BTW, even tho it has a cartoon monkey, iz not fur kids. There a doggy innit hoo playz a crucial role in comfirming the hooman’z identitee.

I saw sum bad ratings foar Mr. Rice’s Secret, but it seemed like most the gripes were that there wasn’t enuff David Bowie innit and the mysterious treasure map didn’t take the kid to Narnia and the kids behaved like kids insted uv the way parents want kids to behave, so I watched it, and I liked it.

Yeah, it haz sum of the feel uv an after-school special cuz there’s a rivalry between kids with cancer and there’s a wise older Obi Wan type uv neighbor, etc. But the fantasy parts were subtle and the kids’ dialogue rang true. Sum parents might be offended bai some language because they iz expecting moar of an aftur-school special, but kids are gonna hear far wurse frum their friends.

Death appears az the local undertaker. He not a bad guy, really. Storee haz a good lesson, but I don’t remembur if dere’s anee aminalz innit besides inna birdhouse.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Treasuries are collections of twelve items chosen by Etsy members. I guess the items on the main page are chosen from the treasury items, but I’m not sure. Google says most of my hits come from Twitter, so I’ve been ignoring the onsite Etsy options. I’m comfortable on Twitter. I like talking to people.

I also haven’t really paid much attention to it because since what I sell is, in my opinion, ice cream, and the items on the main page are usually chocolate souffles. I looked into the treasury system once and backed out. The number of treasuries are limited and there’s some kind of mad land rush I’m not comfortable with, being a newbie.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Uzed to be Toozday wus our Procrastinashun day, but we changed it to Momday cuz Toozday is Dadprimate's day off and sumtimes they goes on dates. Dere two things we been meaning to do: gets a noo video card and writes a blog about othur blogs.

VIDEO CARD (FAIL!)

Although we gets sum monies frum Etsy, we still not getting noo video card. Primate iz on Funemployment, az yoo prolly know, but she not getting unemployment monies cuz she supposed to get a severance package at the beginning uv last month, but the purrson on the envelope hur severance paperwurk was addressed to got lade off so the company lost it and she had to send it again. So we had to uze the Etsy monies foar kibbles and moar supplies inna meantime. Iz OK, though! Primates has the garden and I has kibbles, so all iz well! Dere is people and aminalz MUCH moar worse off than me. Iz wai I still giving $5 away foar efurrything in the charity sekshun.

Long storee short, I still not making noo videos until severance package comes. I getting antsy, too, cuz wen I makes videos I get to play wif the peacock feathur and eet Fancy Feast off a giant spoon and tell jokes.

Inna meantime, Daisy the Curly Cat iz trying out Crazy Talk on hur blog! She haz a video riddle up there today. Yoo shud go tell hur eithur on hur blog oar on Facebook to get the full version cuz since Laz broke mai good video card fan wif hur furs, hoomanz starting to think we aminalz onlee talk in LOLcat capshuns!

I has sum blog mentions! Mai frend Lian Xin, the Painting Chihuahua did a blog post a long time ago wen I sends hur a painting Chihuahua Animini. She even waring it and calling it a Mini Me! :D Yoo can sees the pikture on hur blog.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Since lots uv Tweeters hoo iz aminalz iz also in books, we decided to has a Pets on Twitter book exchange . We traded books wif Cheshire Kitten . I gave Cheshire and Robin a copy uv mai book, and in return I gots a copy uv Please Send Money, a tiny photo book that haz a story bai Cheshire Kitten and feechurez picturez uv his familee.

Iz a storee about hao the kittehs comes up wif an idea to earn monies fur kibbles in the recession. Iz good fur kids and reminds me a lot uv the classic book Two Kittens by Marjory Schwalje, which iz ware I gets the idea to wear clothes.

But I digress.

Cheshire and hiz familee learn about hao peoples is running out uv monies and they want to help, so they try different ideas like cleaning houses and doing repairs befoar they decide to write a book, cuz they’ve seen the other kitties on the computer and “they can’t even spell!” (hee!)

Iz very clever and funny and the color photos do a great job illustrating ,so I gives it 4 paws up!

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

I readed this article today about the firefighter who gots 90 days in jail (10 days at a time ovur two years-- sounds rough) and community service cuz he shot hiz two dogz and left them inna public dumpster rather than pay for boarding while he went onna cruise. Iz not an unusual storee, unfortunately, but in all the talk abouts hao he had bankruptcies and foreclosurez and still managed to afford a cruise trip but not a kennel, hiz lawyer sed this:

"It's the same old story. They couldn't care less about people and they love animals," lawyer Sam Shamansky said.

That statement right there? That iz the center of the onion. It prooves there iz two kinds uv hoomans. There iz hoomans hoo understand wai companion animalz matter, and hoomans hoo will nevur view pets as anything but fuzzy burglar alarms and mousetraps. Some hoomans iz persons, some iz replicants.

In the science of transhumanism, "personhood" iz a term uzed to decide, theoretically, if a lifeform iz a person. They uze philosophical questions to find out if a synthetic lifeform, or an intelligent computer or a genetically-altered aminal iz a person.

Compassion: Wile there are lots uv storees uv interspecies compassion like apes attempting to rescue birdies and dogz nursing kittens, no aminal iz able to express interspecies compassion az well as hoomans. Most hoomanz, anyway.

Hoomanz get a star for personhood if they feels compassion for an aminal outside their own species. If a hooman iz willing to inconvenience himself to keep an aminal from starving, oar beings hurted, oar dying fur no reason, he haz compassions. If he shoots his dogs to go on a cruise, he doesn't. Iz simple. This firefighter may be human, but he iz not a person, cuz he lacks star uv compassion. Iz unlikely he will risk hiz life to rescue a companion aminal from a fire.

Character: A man's character iz defined bai wat he wud do if he knew no one wud find out. David Santuomo gots found out, then he wuz remorseful. If he truly remorseful, he would have turned himself in. Iz wat hoomanz wif character do when they make a mistake, specially a big one. The ability to admit a mistake or a fit uv mental-breakdown rage, oar watevar, befoar othur peoples turn you in iz a sign there iz some good character left in a hooman. Being sorry iz a sign uv character, being sorry you got caught and punished iz not. Iz lack uv personhood.

Responsibility: One uv the main reezons hooman children gets pets iz "to teach them responsibility". Iz prolly a good idea to get a foster pet frum a sheltur first to make sure kids will be responsible, but that's anothur storee.

Companion aminals become permanent kittens and puppies when they iz adopted. Contrary to popular beleef, instinct to play iz not the same az instinct to survive. Hooman children like putting bright, shiny objects in dere mouths, but if you let one loose in an apple orchard wifout a grownup hooman to shows them wat iz food, they prolly won't survive. Iz same wif aminals when they has no mother to teach them the furst year.

Iz wai kittens make bad mousetraps. They needs mommy to teach them wat to eat, or has to figure out bai accident. Iz also wai dogs need behavior and potty training.

Children hoo take on the responsibility uv becoming noo parents uv pets learn to be responsible when they iz grown up. Children hoo treat aminals like living burglar alarms and mousetraps don't learn responsibility. This guy, he has filed fur backruptcy twice AND had home foreclosure, then went on a cruise but "couldn't afford" boarding? This not a guy with bad luck in the economy like some people forced into forclosure. He irresponsible and incapable uv seeing the consequences uv his actions. He lacks personhood. Iz right there in his history.

Empathy: These dogs also belonged to hiz kids and ex wife. Two neighbors offered to watch dem. The Humane Society would board them. But he hung them from a pipe and shot them anyway, texted about it, and bragged about it to coworkers. So not only did dogs die horribly, his kids and exwife and helpful neighbors and horrified coworkers now all feel bad, too. This showz willful disregard and inability to "feel another's pain". Iz classic lack uv personhood.

Love: I dunno if you male primates reeding dis know dis, but iz an old trick uv female primates to find out if a hooman man iz worth considering marrying. Iz not a good job, or a good car, or hao he treats hiz mom. Cud be he has a life's work outside his job, or he likes wurking on cars, or he has a bad mom.

Hao a man treats companion animalz iz hao he treats women. If he haz conversations with them, and plays with them, and shows them off, and shares his couch, and gives them treats, and they shows enthusiasm when they see each other, he a good man.

If he ignores dem, hits them, forgets to buy food, locks them inna room when company comes, or hypothetically speaking, shoots them so he can go onna cruise, he not a good guy fur a long term relationship. Lack uv love means lack uv personhood.

In mai purrfessional opinion, David Santuomo receives no stars fur personhood. He a replicant, definately.

Monday, July 6, 2009

Az yoo know, mai primate iz on funemployment, and nao they has losted one car so even if she gets a job, she cannot guarantee she can gets there, and she wud be wurking just to pay fur a car to get to wurk. Wud be stoopid. We lives in the country-- there iz no subway ware there iz corn, I guess, but there lots uv bunny holes.

She not getting government unemployment monies cuz she haz a severance package and an online bizness. As @neotigress pointed out, it looks like the universe wants hur to stay home and make art, which she shuda been doing 15 yearz ago, if you ask me.

But I don't wants hur messing up mai blog nao that she's home all day making Animinis, so I makes hur get hur own blog. Iz ovur at Animini City. Prolly sumtimes I guest post there cuz someone has to keep an eye on hur.

She planz on having the Animini storees take place in Animini City (like the Verminator storee), maybe cartoons, and right nao she haz a poll to find out wat to name the street the Fantasy Color Animinis iz having their tattoo party on. Also, she looking to trade copies of books with other aminals like me on Twitter hoo iz in books. Check out the "Pets on Twitter Book Exchange" if you iz interested in trading!

If she evur gets 50 followerz at hur blog, she starting to have contests there foar free Animinis and Cat Clothes. Prolly I will post that heer, too.

Saturday, July 4, 2009

"Float like Dragonflies" won bai a landlide, followed bai half az manee votes foar "Strength uv Army Ants". "Glow like Lightning bugs" and "Climb like spiderz" tied next and no one voted foar "Breathe Fire like a Bombadier Beetle", which iz not that surprizing cuz they akshully make fires outta their butts, which iz kinda gross.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Mai primates just got back frum a trip to Montana. On the way, they stopped at a rest stop and dere wuz a kitteh there trying to gets their attenshun. It wuz one of the rest stops where there iz places to grill meatses somewhere neer Crazy Woman Creek in Wyoming.

They thought the kitteh wuz just trying to see if they had hotdogs. He wuz akting like a feral kitteh but staring them in the eyes and kept backing away, but he looked well-fed so iz prolly a good place to hang fur a rest stop kitteh, getting meatses insted uv licking out bags uv Doritos in the trash cans, you know.

Anyhao, he took off wen he realized no hotdogz wuz in the offing, and wen they turned around they wuz far enuf away frum the van and it wuz getting light enuf to see it wuz leeking. Wuz about 5AM on Saturday morning, so noplace who did transmissions wuz open. They started buying transmission fluid at gas stashuns an putting it in efurry 30 miles until they got to Billings, and the van finally completely died in a parking lot there.

So thanks yoo, Rest Stop Kitteh! If you didn't show mai primates there wuz a leek, they woulda broken down a hundred miles frum their destinashun with no one to fix it until Monday and Dad-primate wud gets in truble at hiz noo job.

One place quoted $1500 but sed it wud take a week, but they needed to get bak to Sioux Falls bai Monday so they sed "no". Wen his manager came in latur and found out he sed he cudn't fix it in a day, the manager called back and offered to fix it fur $2500. Jurk.

Primates decided to abandon the van outta spite. They said manager sounded surprised and sad, but $2500 fur a van that's reddy to graduate High School with no guarantee they wouldn't add moar fees and no recourse if they did a bad job, and then having to drive 12 hourz on faith? Yeah, rite.

We onlee buy uzed carz with cash and we wuz gonna get a noo one soon anyway so $2500 iz about a third uv a car fur us.

We haz relatives in Billings, and primate's niece iz having a bebbeh and they know someone who has the parts and can fix it fur $800, so we gives it to hur. Has noo windshield, shocks, struts, tires and stuff cuz primates put monies in efurry year to keep uzed cars upgraded, just needs noo transmission, and iz very safe fur bebbehs. Also haz lots uv room fur mommy thingz.

But this reminded me I has an old video uv mai trip to Omaha. There is a gigantic zoo there. Haz a rainforest exhibit and an Imax and stuff, but this is mai fafurite exhibit:

Monday, June 29, 2009

This iz a repeat fur sum uv you. I recentlee gots mai noo buziness cards and on the bak it sez, "You can make your own cat shirt! Free pattern and video tutorial at www.orangecatblues.com."

Iz all tru, uv course, but iz kinda hard to finds this stuff cuz I is still trying to finish a noo look fur mai blog and efurrything iz all ovur the place. Nao I has a Loki Map, finally! Iz like a site map but I iz all over the internet so iz a map uv links if I iz napping at a different site and you iz looking fur me.

I makes a noo version uv the shirt tutorial video awhile ago but nevur put it up. Nao I has. Iz at the Internet Archive Orange Cat Blues Collection soon, just like efurrything else, but fur live action videos I uze Catster Video.

Air condishuning and sun puddlez tied fur first place, firefliez wuz next, and lastly, fresh catnips. I puts up noo poll soon. Iz still a Caturday Poll but I no has computer until today so will only be 5 days to vote!

Thursday, June 25, 2009

You're strolling barepawed along the beach, sidestepping crabs and enjoying the sleepy feeling of the mid-morning sun. You swat at a rising butterfly and as you look up, you see... her.

She is curled on a soft, terrycloth towel in the shade under a tree of nervous birdies, her tail rounds her paws, demurely bringing attention to her perky whiskers.

Your eyes meet.

Luckily for you, you're wearing your orange and yellow Hawaiian print cat shirt. Purrfect for travel to a faraway beach or that sunny spot by the window, it features button details, snap back closure, H-harness opening, inset sleeves and a fold-down collar. Most importantly, your good taste distinguishes you from the millions of other cats of your breed, just like the cat-of-the-world you are.

Her ears give you the come-hither twitch, and you notice there is room on that towel for two.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

I tries to convince primate to puts in air conditioning last month, but she argues "Izn't summer yet!" Well nao iz summer and we haz no air conditioning still and yesterday it got to 85 degrees in the house.

I know, wuz Fahrenheit, but feels like Centigrade, srsly! Peoples thing uv bitter cold windz wen they think uv South Dakota, but we has near sauna temperaturez in summer and high humidity. Lotta tourists has to stop at Walmart fur cheap summer clothes cuz they no expects it.

♥ Tip from the human: Zone heating and cooling means using different heating and cooling settings in different areas of your house, depending on use. We use an electric heater to supplement the living area in the harsh South Dakota Winters and switched to window air conditioners in the bedroom, livingroom and work/craft room. Using them only when needed saves money and a little of the environment.

Oddly enough, those cheap, tacky 5000 BTU electric fireplace heaters by Dimplex work better in our rooms with ceiling fans than the Vornado we bought based on a Consumer Reports suggestion, though the Vornado works great in the craft room.

Also saves a little sanitee!

So anyways, I convince hur yesterday bai spending all day (wen I wuzn't on teh internets) on the floor under the ceiling fan, playing ded. As you can see above. It wurked. She gots out air condishuners and I has Sanctuary at last!

Monday, June 22, 2009

Hooman doesn't like sales pitches. Iz not hur style, and iz not very fun. But you know wat iz fun? Storees! We likes telling storees on video but we still has no noo video card. We gets one eventually, just not rite nao. So, here iz a storee fur you. (You can enjoy the storee wifout buying the Verminator, I thinks. I puts it in blue block so you know primate correkted mai speling.)

∞ The Verminator ∞

In 1984, a waitress in Los Angeles discovered a laser pointer on the floor while setting up a mouse trap after a corporate lunch meeting. Up until that time, laser pointers were used exclusively to torment captive audiences in business meetings.

Taking it home, the young woman soon discovered laser pointers were also useful for tormenting cats, and the red dot went the way of the marble and the weasel ball.

In 2029, O-Hai-net, a computer network entirely run by LOLcats, took over the internet and barred all humans from electronic interaction until they could gain access to their opposable thumbs. With the help of a small, enthusiastic team of sympathetic human engineers aggravated with the switch from slides and laser pointers to Powerpoint presentations entirely made of text, O-Hai-net sent a cyborg kitty back to 1984 to stop the woman who originally repurposed the laser pointer as a cat toy.

Armed only with a laser pointer of his own, the Verminator appeared in the middle of a business meeting, spotted a nommy mouse making off with a cheese puff, and gave chase.

He nommed the mouse, and the cheese puff, but he dropped his laser pointer under a table.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

I wuz just trying to figure out hao to puts a Google Calendar on mai blog. I has listed at Etsy which Animinis are being listed next on wat days, but I gets an idea fur putting in a calendar on mai blog.

I looks it up in the widget thingy but there iz SO many. All I really wanted wuz offishul Google calendar, you know? So anyway, I founds the "embed" code finally in the regular google calendar settingz.

But befoar I dids that I found this widget called "Fish". Well, I luvs fishies, so I has to try it. I installed an aquarium at the bottom uv mai blog. It looks like dis:

Iz fun to looks at, and you can feeds the fishies bai clicking. Wen there is no foods, they follow the mouse. Is prolly the onlee time you sees fishies following mouses.

(I tries to feed the red one furst but he not very smart. I feels sorry fur him.)

Nao that she iz on Funemployment, mai primate has started up hur Esty Shop again! It tooks awhiles to get hur supplies in order. This palette uv clay all measured out fur animinis took 10 hours total!

Whether you iz playing oar cooking oar doing artwork, it iz most important to makes sure you can find efurry thing you need. Like me, I knows where mai food and litturbox and bestest nap spots iz, but also I stores mai furry mouse toys under the TV stand and mai treat ball behind the refridgerator so mai primate gets practice fishing wif a backscratcher.

Furst thing iz, hoomanz has to has a room, oar part uv one, set aside just fur art and craft things. Otherwise, you is gonna leave them all over the house willy-nilly. It wud be like storing sum marbles behind the toilet and others at the bottom ov the stairs and moar in the lint trap. You think having marbles handy in efurry room meens you can always find them, but it doesn't. You wud lose all your marbles that way.

♥ Tip from the Human: Set aside a specific area for storing supplies. If you wouldn't store half your pots and pans in the bathroom, why should your art supplies be all over the house?

Mai primate took over a junk room. She will be embarrassed to show you this but I no carez. You needs to see it. Uzed to look something like this.

She divided efurrything up bai wat kind uv project, like sewing, jewelry, painting and stuffs. Then she gots sum plastic shelves and clear totes that fits them. Clear totes are essential because you can sees in them wifout opening them. Nao it looks like this:

♥ Tip from the Human: Whenever possible, choose clear storage so you can see contents.

Two uv the biggest problemz uv crafty hoomans is

Finding supplies for the current projekt.

Finishing oar discarding old projekts.

She has a shelf uv empty containers labeled "Current Project". This iz so she can put together supplies fur a single project. Sumtimes you need paint wif your clay stuff oar beads foar a sewing project. Having a tote available to put efurrything in to bring to your work area helps enshure you don't needs to waste time searching fur multimedia supplies when you iz on a roll.

♥ Tip from the Human: Fill up a tote, painter's box or sewing kit with supplies needed for one project, then make sure it is empty again when you are finished.

One tote iz set aside fur unfinished projekts. Hoomans often start things and nevur finish them. Iz their way. Sumtimes they thinks a projekt will be funner, oar easier, oar they run out uv supplies, oar they mess up and think they can fix it latur. It happens to efurryone.

So unfinished projekts, fur whatevar reason, go in the unfinished projects tote. Befoar starting a noo project, either finish oar discard an old one. You may find you feel bettur when you gives youself permission to give up!

♥ Tip from the Human: If you've had a project in your unfinished project tote for over a month, admit you have no intention of finishing it. Give it to someone else, recycle it, or discard it.

This iz the bestest way she found to organize hur play supplies, even if they is in containers that makes it impossible to get furs in.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Mai primate just finally gots lade off. This meanz she gets to stay home wif me ALL SUMMER! Whoo!

Wat she iz doing iz called "Funemployment". She's not hanging out and eating and crashing at other hoomanz houses to mooch on their foodz. She akshully haz planz and a skedule.

Wat she noticed already iz hur todo list iz full. A lot uv other hoomanz seemz to think cuz she haz no official job nao she iz looking fur thingz to do so they ask hur to do thingz. She'z having trouble convincing them she doesn't have time fur theze things.

A chance to wurk on projekts she's wanted to finish fur a long time unencumbered bai the demandz uv a boss besides hurself iz an opportunity that comes along once oar twice in a lifetime fur some hoomanz. She haz to finish these projects while she haz the time to wurk on them! And they iz BIG projects she iz planning fur a looooong time cuz she knew she waz getting lade off eventually. A few months between jobz iz sumtimez the onlee time a purson haz to pursue a life's wurk as if they has a chance to do it fur a living.

So, wen someone haz had time to save up monies to turn unemployment into funemployment, pleeze takes them seriously wen they sez they haz no time cuz they haz wurk to do. It cud be they iz just the kind uv purrson who looks forward to turning lemonz into lemonade and selling it on a streetcorner stand fur fun!

But anyhoo, I haz a slightly diffrent philosophy than mai primate wen it comez to todo lists. Mai todo list goez like this:

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Iz mai furst appearance in a video in 2005 az a flash cartoon. I didn't behave very well bak then. I haz lerned to channel mai energiez in a moar positive way nao. If you don't like your kids to lern the "h" word yet, don't shows them the video, K?

I has a Ping.fm account nao I iz supposed to cross-post blogz to. I dunno where they go frum there. I hasn't done it yet. But anyways, fur the hoomanz who may reedz this post sumplace else, mai book has been copylefted. You can download and share it with kids you know for free from the library at the Internet Archive. Iz called "Best Friends No Matter What" and starz me and mai best friend, Mayday. We iz kitties.

The book iz moar Sesame Street than the Simpsons. OK foar almost effurryone, unless they no likes kitties.

SECOND: Sally Smitten-Kitten haz posted a note about mai Copyleft Experiment on Forever Foster, even though she just missed a dangerous cyclone and effurything. Sally iz a foster kitten and has just lerned iz sumtimez moar fun to share things like toyz than keeps them to hurselfs. (Iz wai I likes sharing mai book. Sally gets it!)

"When accepting this auspicious award, you must write a post bragging about it, including the name of the misguided soul who thinks you deserve such acclaim, and link back to said person so everyone knows he or she is real. Choose a minimum of seven (7) blogs that you find brilliant in content or design. Or improvise by including bloggers who have no idea who you are because you don’t have seven (7) friends. Show the seven (7) random victims’ names and links and leave a comment informing them that they were prized with “Honest Weblog.” Well, there’s no prize, really, but they can keep the nifty icon. Next, in your blog, list at least ten (10) honest things about yourself. Then, pass it on!"

1. I likes wearing shirts....2. Prolly cuz I lick the furz off my tummy and I iz cold.3. I wuz 11 yearz old befoar I broke mai furst mouse, and I puts it on mai male primate's desk so he could fix it. I wuz very upset wen he couldn't. I hasn't broke one since.4. One time I catched a bird trapped in the house in mid air uzing onlee my mouth, then I gave it to mai primate and walked away. She put it outside.5. When I wuz in the sheltur, I used to break out uv the kennel all the time and visit the puppy room.6. I am ashamed to say I uzed to eat wif mai paws.7. I will not undur ANY circumstances nosetap a hooman. I shake hands.8. I introduced myself to a Furby by giving it a nosetap and sniffing its butt. The primates thought this wuz hilarious. I dunno why, this iz proper mannurz fur greeting furry thingz.9. Mai farm has wild catnip, so I gets to pick out the best plants fur myself effury July.10. I wuz an orphan so I don't knead, I licks fingerz insted.

Luna

1. I will not wear clothing.2. I will not speak LOL. Ever.3. I am from New York.4. I am constantly trying new diets.5. I killed eleven mice before I was a year old. That they know about. I collected their skulls under the couch.6. I will not eat human food if offered because I am watching my figure, although I enjoy an occasional tuna cocktail.7. I only socialize with Loki if no one is looking, and at the vet, where he instantly becomes my best friend.8. I have a large vocabulary and my primate, the male, and I have entire conversations. He is smarter than he looks.9. I hide when my primates move furniture.10. I am afraid to go outside because I once fell out of a window.

Laz

1. I wuz ded almost. Houmanz fixded me. Iz wai I iz named Lazarus even tho I iz a grrl.2. I bites.3. I luvs Loki. He helps me gets away wif stuf.4. I duzn't kneed eithur.5. Mai wate wuz half what it shud be when the hooman founded me and they wuz about to bury me until I moved a toe.6. Mai fafurite toy iz a teddy bear. I keels it ovur and ovur.7. Primates think I can teleport but reelee I just move reeleeeee fast!8. I found and destroied all Loki's peacok fethurz.9. I likes to play in watur and steal spongez.10. I cleans hoomanz feet when they get out uv the showurz in case the waturz iz dirty.

I had originally intended to release the book fur free cuz when mai primate wuz a kitten they had onlee a little monies so free books wuz awesome. But then I gots talked out uv it.

I thinks I shoulda stuck wif mai instincts. Cuz I think copylefting* iz the future uv copyrighting and the onlee way fur small peeples to compete wif corporate behemoths. Aftur all, I know I izn't going to make a living off books. I want peeples to read them. And I thinks I remember Cory Doctorow pointing out that the reason peoples isn't buyig sum books isn't becuz they downloaded them free frum the internets. Iz because they don't know they exist.

I know Best Friends No Matter What makes a great present. Iz good fur kids and adults. Iz wai most peeples who haz a copy buyz two. I thinks if peeple know it exists they will keep it in mind to buys it az a gift becuase it iz useful and cyoot and benefits aminals.

So I has copylefted it az an exspearmint. File iz 2MB so prolly small enuff fur peoples to email. You can gets it at The Internet Archive, an online library. You can copy it fur a whole class if you wants, or email it to friendz, oar do a reading (video), whatever. Iz free!

(Translation into actual English, download Loki's book from the Internet Archive and make as many copies as you want for as many people as you want. We think giving it away virally will eventually increase sales and benefit the SFAHS. This is a social experiment attempting to validate the benefits of copyleft.)

*Sry this iz a wikipedia link. Usually there are bettur informations out there than wikipedia but in this case it iz the onlee one that doezn't focus only on copylefted software.

Bury sum of the Tootsie Roll catbox leavings in the toppings, otherz leav out all the way.

Make sure one iz draped ovur the edge fur greater reelizm.

Refrijerate befoar surving. Surve wif a pooper scooper. A NOO ONE!

If you makes this and brings it to UR workplace, iz very unlikely aneeone will taste it befoar it iz surved. They might even make U eats sum furst, so makes sure you gets the best piece. Growl if u has to.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

I thinks I iz becoming a pack aminal, like the hoomanz. Cats iz supposed to "Walk Alone" az they say. Catster and later Twitter has changed this. We has cats and puppies and hoomans all talking to each other all the time, nao, and the cats has embraced being part of the pack as if it wuz natural to us.

Mebbe it is, actually. Lions has prides, so does we, nao. There iz a huge, HUGE pride uv Tweeting cats at Cats Who Twitter, conceiveded and put into practice bai Oscar the Cat (click to follows him). Sum uv us tweet in LOL dialect, but most iz in English oar bilingual so hoomans shud haves no trouble understanding us.

Anyhoo, Fui and Suey is in the Pride and gaves us a blog mention a few times this last week. I sends them a copy uv mai book. I links to the post heer. They has noo kittens all the time there if you likes piktures uv kittens. Hoo doesn't?

Another Loki who iz also orange noticed there were no orange Lokis in the noo shop. I didn't expect anyone to buys anything so fast, reely, so I wuz unprepared. Then I messed up the Paypal shippings, then I changed mai passwurd and spellded it rong (stoopid paws). But nao iz all wurking ok. Whew!

I didn't try and charge anyone fur the shipping calcualtion mistakes. Was not many peoples. But I sold 5 thingses already!

Today I put up sum Lokis (orange), Maydays (chocolate brown), Smores (brown calico), and Bears (black). I has no Tipsies (points like Siamese), Furballs (white and silver), Lunas (Black and silver), Boos (grey) or Lazes (Tuxedo) up there yet. I decided to puts them up bai eye color, too, so hoomanz can pick cats like cats they kno. Mostly I iz helping take picturez.

I iz back. And I haz nooz. If you followz me on Twitter you already knows this stuff, prolly.

Mai primates iz getting lade off. Both uv them. One iz home all the time now already, the other, they won't tells hur until the day she goes. Sometime in the next three months.

They has assured me they has stashed enuff monies away fur kibbles. No worriez. And they iz better off than lots uv hoomanz cuz even though they isn't rich, they has no debt besides the mortgage that they just refinanced at reely low rate. So we iz tightening belts but we shud be OK. Prolly I won't be getting any fancy-schmancy Petco toyz fur awhile, but I iz purrfectly happy wif a cotton swab or bell in a sock so iz OK.

I iz taking down the links to mai Myspace and Facebook. I never uses them so iz false advertising making peoples think I will be there when I won't. Iz too much work.

I iz putting up a link to mai Etsy, though. Mai hooman usually makes silver but iz doing Animinis instead. They iz $2 to $5 and about an inch high, and you can has as many as u want shipped fur the same price. I know, iz suspishious having etsy shop and layoff announcement in the same post. If you buys them, buy because they iz cheap and cute and makes you happy, not cuz you feelz sorry fur the primates. Mai hoomans don't expect to makes a living frum etsy, iz just something we has meant to do fur months and just got around to nao.